we have team coverage of the winter weather advisory. we begin with christina loren. >> good morning to you and to you at home. while you were sleeping, we picked up quite a bit of rainfall in the area. the temperatures are falling off. we are still getting a little bit of pink here. on the radar, a little white as well. it's very light snow flurries coming down at low elevations this morning. down to about 500 feet, in fact. it's a pretty rare sight here in the bay area. i want to widen out and give you an idea of how much came through the bay area. heavy rain, come cities picked up to an inch. for the morning hours, this is heading to the south. i want to point out, saturday is a big travel day. if you are trying to get into southern california, it could shut down the grapevine. we are watching for that. as we head out the morning hours, the skies are clearing. all the warmth radiates out into

the atmosphere and temperatures are going to get colder. we are looking at clear skies, even in san francisco at this point. it's going to lead to frigid conditions. it's not going to be that cold in the city, it's still going to be colder on your windshield and over the metallic bridge overpass area. keep that in mind, travel cautiously. as we head throughout the day today, temperatures are going to remain cool. we have fallen to 30 degrees. 35 in petaluma and 37 in navato. the south bay is cool. 44 in campbell. this is one of the areas where it will be dangerous for travel this morning. i want to bring in anthony slaughter, he is live in los gatos where it's cold. anybody losing control of their vehicle this morning? >> reporter: people are going at average speed as they typically go. we haven't seen folks have any accidents, that's good news.

you want to take it easy if you are about to head out. 31 degrees in los gatos. it is below freezing. of course water freezes at 32. that means dangerous roadways. we are tracking the potential for black ice this morning. through the santa cruz mountains, allow an extra car length space between you and the car in front of you. maybe more than that. once you hit black ice, there's nothing you can do to get off that. take it easy on the roads. we have that freeze warning in effect through tomorrow. highway 17 summit, the north bay, the dumbarton bridge is going to be treacherous, especially considering we picked up an inch of rain here in the santa cruz mountains. that will do it for me here. team coverage over to christy smith in the east bay to talk about what we have going on

there. >> reporter: good morning. much the same over here. another cold morning. one thing i have learned from working the morning shift, not quite as cold as it's going to get. going to get much colder. i wanted to tell you what's going on in castro valley. 12 hours after a water main break. crews still working on the repair this morning. it looks like they made some progress. what we are watching them do is jump dirt back on the sinkhole where the water main break was. what caused it, it's unclear. could be related to the very, very cold temperatures we are having. what a mess it caused as a river of water poured down the street here. this is at santa maria avenue. the break caused a 10 to 15 foot sinkhole. most of the water washed into yards and garages. one woman says it rushed into part of her home.

>> we were just in the -- in our living room and heard this rushing and thought it was pouring rain or something was happening. looked out here, the water was rushing. came out quickly. it's just been nonstop for probably at least a half hour. >> reporter: now, within a couple hours, the water main was shut off and there was no water service in the area. when we were pulling up this morning, all the streets are blocked off as the work is going on. it is a water main. certainly a reminder to take care of your own pipes. freezing or near freezing temperatures. freeze warnings as well. certainly a reminder to insulate your pipes, keep water running. still very, very cold out here this morning. reporting live, back to you. >> thank you very much. thanks for joining us this morning. four homeless people died because of the freezing temperatures in santa clara county. county officials are out urging

the homeless to find shelter. on any given night, more than 7,000 homeless people are out on the streets. the challenge is finding space for everyone when there are only 650 beds in three shelters. homeless advocates say even if there were enough beds, some homeless people prefer to spend the night in the elements under bridges or on benches. >> in every bunch, there's a bunch of people that are stubborn. a lot of the homeless are stubborn and want to do things it way they want to do them, not the way they should. >> all of the shelters will remain open for the weekend. they are asking, if you have extra blankets, jackets or socks to donate them so they can help people stay warm this weekend. find out how on www.nbcbayarea.com. snowplows are trying to keep up with all the snow that is good in the long run, but makes for dangerous driving in the

short run. grass valley in the sierra foot high schools saw a decent blanketing. anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 feet level. if you are headed to the sierra, chains are required on several roadways. part of state route 89 is also closed by alpine county because of the snow. we want to know what the weather is like where you are. send us a picture of what you see. go to www.nbcbayarea.com. there in the upper right hand corner, you'll find a tab that says send pics. you can share your photos on facebook and twitter. he is headed home this morning. the palo alto man detained in north korea is on a plane headed back to the bay area this morning. 85-year-old merrill newman arrived last night. we have more from china.

>> reporter: good morning. merrill newman is now a free man. he was deported by north korea this morning on the first available flight. when he arrived here in beijing, he looked relieved and remarkably fit. he said he was grateful to north korea for releasing him and happy to be out. >> i'm glad to be on my way home. i appreciate the tolerance that the government has given to me to be on my way. >> he said he was looking forward to getting home, looking forward to seeing his wife. north korea says they released him because of his age and because of his medical condition. they also said they were satisfied he made a confession, an apology for alleged crimes during the korean war. now, that came a week ago in a televised confession, which he read on live state television. judging by the way he read that, it could have been written for him or he may have been forced

to read it. that wasn't clear today. he was met at the airport by u.s. officials from the embassy and a little later this afternoon, took a commercial flight back to san francisco where he'll be arriving in a few hours time to be united with his family. i'm ian williams for today on the bay. >> thank you very much, eastern. merrill newman's son said they got a chance to talk to him by phone after he arrived in china. >> he is eager to be reunited with his family. you can imagine, this is a very difficult ordeal for us, as a family and particularly him. we want to thank everyone who has made this possible. >> newman will land this morning at sfo. we'll have more on his return in the 5:00 and 6:00 newscast. tonight as well as all day long coverage at www.nbcbayarea.com. scaled back.

still ahead on today in the bay, the latest on the search for a missing bay area man and his family after the plane he was flying disappeared in idaho. why part of the search has been interrupted. also, out of touch. workers say they barely make enough to pay their bills. mcdonalds is offering how much to tip people.

good morning to you waking up in san jose. well, the foliage as fall but the temperature says winter for sure. snow and frigid temperatures hamper the aerial search for a missing executive and his family in idaho yesterday. >> we are still hoping for a positive outcome. we are hoping by some miracle, by the grace of god, we'll be

able to find our family members, that they were able to have a safe landing and they are waiting for us to come and rescue them and bring them home. >> only ground crews were able to maneuver to look for the plane. he was flying his family from oregon to montana sunday when he reported engine trouble. the family has not been heard from since. snow is in the forecast the next couple days. it's unclear when search planes can take off again. a scary scene shows a crushed garage and cars not supposed to be in the garage at the time. one driver rear ended another, sending a car into a garage on meridian avenue in san jose. the homeowner was in the garage at the time. fortunately, was unhurt. they suffered minor injuries. the drivers may have been speeding. the man accused of throwing two cats into the bay is now under arrest. animal care and control officers took eric patterson into

custody. acc officers say he took a woman's belongings, including a cat carrier and flung them into the bay near pier 4 last week. both the cats drown. do you ever feel lost when looking for that perfect gift? coming up, we'll show you a new apple tool to help you find your way when shopping, even if you can't find exactly what you are looking for. good morning to you. i'm meteorologist christina loren. the storm system is moving out. the cold air is settling in. we have a concern for black ice this morning. we'll tell you where you need to travel cautiously and we have a freezing cold temperature trend ahead. the full forecast when today in the bay comes back.

good morning to you. looking live at one of the

pictures from san jose, looking very cold. one of the big south bay events is the holiday parade. that's one of the big concerns for black ice this morning. christina loren is in with the forecast. about 31, i heard you say right now. >> yeah, it's cold enough for black ice, definitely a concern. good morning to you, kris. good morning to you at home. take a look at the front that came through the bay area. this is brought about two and a half feet of fresh powder to the highest peaks in tahoe and us, we are getting very low flurries this morning. a lot of the activity is clearing out. i want to show you what we are working with now. around the east foothills, very, very low flurries at 500 feet. throughout the morning, now that the skies are clearing, the temperatures are dropping quickly. you need to travel cautiously out there if you are heading out and about.

the temperatures are near freezing and cold enough for black ice. the surrounding air is not as cold as what you are going to find on the metallic bridges and overpasses. take it easy out there. 33 in saratoga. it's cold enough for black ice. you will find that trend, especially in the higher terrain across the bay area. you want to take it easy out there this morning. here is where we are headed throughout the day today. temperatures are able to climb, but not by much, only into the 50s. that's because we started out so cold. plenty of 40s out there. 46 in the south bay today. east bay, 46 degrees. 47 in san francisco. take a look at this gorgeous sunrise we are getting. i want to point out a couple things. the hour-by-hour forecast shows it chilly. old glory is getting a lot of pick up. the winds are strong. that means there will be a windchill factor out there this morning. very cold, if you plan on

getting out there to do holiday shopping. tonight, things change again. it is going to be very cold. another round of the low 20s. because we picked up so much moisture, more thick frost is on the way to the bay area. we are looking at a temperature range of 21 to 30 degrees. overnight lows very cold. dress in layers. protect the pets and keep an eye on them. bring the plants in. you can find the seven day forecast for your neighborhood at the bottom of your screen. i want to focus on one area, the trivalley for two reasons. it's going to be very cold through tuesday. we could be sparing the air monday and tuesday. put that on your radar. then, kris, finally warming up for the end of next week. it will not be quite as bitter cold out there. still, low 60s. cooler than average for december. back to you. >> we are kicki ining ourselves right now, we didn't put our christmas lights up after

thanksgiving. we are doing it in the cold. mcdonald executives are getting blasted for putting holiday advice for tipping. the tipping recommendations come as fast food workers went on strike across the nation pushing for an increase in minimum wage. they make, on average, $9 an hour. in addition, gratuity for au pair included tip suggestions for massage therapists, dog walkers and personal trainers. apple wants to go shopping with you. apple rolled out an app at stores in the u.s. the technology uses the bluetooth on your iphone to send messages about products and events. the alerts are tailored to where you are in the store. for it to work, you need ios 7 and apple needs permission to track you on your phone. remembering the life of nelson mandela. still to come, the world mourns

and reflects and we are looking deeper into the impact here in the bay area.

good morning to you. take a look at this. these are live pictures from south africa this morning where remembering nelson mandela is taking on a celebrating tone. we saw people singing and dancing together as they remember this world leader. it's been celebrated around the world for a couple days now. president obama and the first lady will pay their respects in south africa next week. george w. bush and bill clinton along with their wives, laura bush and former secretary of state hillary clinton will join them. the stadium is where his body will lie and stay in

pretoria and he will receive a memorial in his birth town. we are shown how he's been remembered by a few people in the bay area who play a small role in his effort to end apartheid. >> reporter: the one he counts most precious is the photo of him with nelson mandela. >> that picture you see of me speaking from -- after meeting him at that particular point is a picture that i cherish. >> reporter: the picture was taken during mandela's 1990 visit to the oakland coliseum. williams was there to greet him. >> i was so, so overcome by this man who was not just soft spoken, but who articulated and interpreted to people his genuine humanness. >> reporter: williams was asked

to speak before mandela. the memory flooded back when he learned mandela died at age 95. >> i said we lost something that was so important. >> demonstrators scuffled with police. >> reporter: williams was among po tes tors arrested in demonstrations at uc berkeley. assemblywoman nancy skinner helped organize the protest as a cal student. >> we had over a 100 day sit in in the plaza. celebrity arrested where we went to the office of the president and said we won't move. >> reporter: the city of berkeley was among the first to vote to divest from south africa. during mandela's 1990 visit, he quoted it as a pivotal moment in the fight against apartheid. >> when he was released and came to oakland, it was so thrilling. we had a rule, not only in his

release, but in the xhachange t freedom and democracy. >> reporter: a soft spoken man who said volumes with his acts and words. >> he did it with the power of his wisdom and with his power of his action and with the power of his concern for human kind. the bay area remains under a freeze warning. coming up on today in the bay, what you need to know whether you are heading outside, hitting the road or want to help the vulnerable population.

good morning to you. looking live at san francisco from our camera in emeryville.

believe it or not, one of the hot spots in this very cold snap. the rain stopped, but could turn to black ice on roadways and bridges like the bay bridge as the freezing temperatures continue. thanks for joining us this saturday morning, i'm kris sanchez. we have team coverage of the winter weather advisory. we begin with christina loren. >> good morning to you at home. something we always get excited about here in the bay area, snow on top of the mountain. look at this. we just got this picture in from the observatory. you can see a dusting of the white stuff on the ground. we don't think it's going to stick around but it's a rare occurrence in the bay area. i want to show you the radar and see where we stand in terms of showers. most of the activity is pushing out into southern california. i want to show you, we have a bit of moisture lingering. it's cold enough for light flurries surrounding san jose.

we have a little bit of shower activity just to the east of livermore at this point. let me widen out for you and show you what came through the bay area overnight and where this is headed. you can see some cities picked up over an inch of rain in the bay area. we'll show you the totals coming up. all the snowfall is headed in southern california and will likely shut down the grapevine as we head through tonight. keep it in mind if you are traveling down there. we are really watching the snow levels here at 2,000 feet. on top of grapevine, 4,000 feet. here is what we are looking at as we get into the day. the skies are clear. a chance of black ice. mid-30s in the north bay. it is cold this morning, which brings me to anthony slaughter, meteorologist out there. a lot of people are hitting up and hitting the highway. have you seen black ice? >> reporter: the thing about

black ice, it looks like wet pavement. as i'm looking at the highway off to the left, we are on highway 17 through los gatos, it does look slick. of the, temperatures below freezing right now and for the past couple hours, the threat for black ice looms as you head out this morning. of course, we have been telling you we are under a freeze warning. that freeze warning is extended through tomorrow morning. tonight, even as temperatures fall once again, around 9:00, 10:00 tonight, temperatures hovering near freezing and going below freezing. for this morning, make sure you use caution on the roadways. once you hit the black ice, there's not much you can do. we are going to continue our coverage now with christie smith in the east bay to talk about problems we have had there. christie? >> reporter: good morning to you. neighbors here in castro valley are not only waking up to cold

temperatures, but they have low pressure or no water at all. there was a 12-inch water main break. i just spoke to a worker. a new pipe is in the ground but they have to fill it and compact the dirt before they attempt to get the water service back on. with the ongoing cold temperatures, just a reminder of how important the pipes are. something you don't think about. at 7:00, a river, literally gallons and gallons of water poured down the road at santa maria avenue in castro valley. it caused a 10 to 15 foot sinkhole to open up and swallowed two tires of a fire truck that came to help. crews were able to redirect much of it away from homes but it did damage several homes. one woman says they heard rushing water. >> a back room is flooded. our backyard is flooded. a mess. it's a mess. >> reporter: now, what caused

the break? it's still unclear this morning. whether it's related to the cold temperatures, certainly we have had a week of freezing or near freezing temperatures. it certainly serves as a reminder to insulate your pipe, keep water running, anything to keep that freeze from starting. reporting live in castro valley, back to you. >> thank you very much christie. four homeless people in santa clara county fell victim to the cold snap. to make sure no one else dies, county officials are urging homeless to head to a shelter. there are more than 7,000 homeless people on the streets but only 650 beds in three shelters. even during the coldest weather, some people refuse to seek shelter and try to brave the elements. >> in every bunch, there's a bunch of people that are stubborn, you know? a lot of homeless are stubborn. they want to do things the way they want to do them, not the

way they should. >> all of the shelters will remain open through the weekend. they are asking for people to donate socks, blankets and jackets so that no one goes cold this weekend. to sierra where the snowplows are trying to keep up with mother nature and all the snow that is good in the long run, but makes for dangerous driving in the short run. towns like grass valley saw a decent blanketing of snowfall yesterday between 2,000 and 3,000 feet. chp reminds you, if you are carrying chains, pack extra blankets and supplies in case you get stranded. chains are required on several high ways including plaster, el dorado and part of 89 is closed because of the snow. we want to know what the weather is like where you are. send us a picture of what you see whether you are shopping or headed to a festivity. go to www.nbcbayarea.com.

in the upper right corner of the screen, you'll find a tab that says send pics. or you can share with us on facebook and twitter. anxious anticipation as a palo alto man detained in korea is expected to land soon. merrill newman was released on humanitarian grounds after apologizing for committing hostile acts during the korean war. newman arriving at the beijing airport tells nbc news he is grateful to be headed home to the bay area. >> i'm glad to be on my way home. i appreciate the tolerance the government gave to me to be on my way. >> newman also says he feels good and he is very eager to see his wife. vice president joe biden was in south korea when newman was released. the white house says biden did offer him a ride home on air

force 2 but he decided to take a direct flight to fso instead. the government reiterated calls to release another american, kenneth bay who has been captive more than a year now. some san francisco police officers will trade in uniforms for seattle sea hawks gear sunday. it's away that hope to deal with rowdy fans against seattle. the seahawks crushed them in september. greg showed off the examples of the gear for his officers. he said there will be officers, more officers on duty during the game. batkid is returning to san francisco for a fund-raiser. the 5-year-old cancer survivor, miles cot became an internet sensation last month. now they are returning to lead

the brave the bay charity. >> make a wish foundation is another charity the 49ers patronize. miles will lend help to the 49ers sunday. it is a busy weekend for batkid. the triathlon starting this morning to raise $75,000 for the make a wish foundation. i think they made their case clear, it's a good cause. still ahead on today in the bay, why a long time tradition commemorating the attack on pearl harbor has been canceled and what veterans are saying about it.

to those who've waited... worried... poked and prodded... taken risks... and lived in a state of "what if?"... welcome to a new state... of health. welcome to covered california. the place to find quality, affordable coverage. financial help for those in need. and nobody can be denied because of a pre-existing condition. enroll now at coveredca.com. [ ding ] cheese plate? cheese plate. no, i made something better. you used the oven? boom. [ male announcer ] pillsbury crescents. make the holidays pop. ♪ make t♪ holidays pop. hey, that's the last crescent! oh, did you want it? yeah. we'll split it.

[ female announcer ] made fresh, so light, buttery and flakey. that's half. that's not half! guys, i have more. thanks, mom. [ female announcer ] do you have enough pillsbury crescents? good morning freemont, we are looking live at you this morning. you can see some of the flags there in the distance waving in the wind. christina loren says that means

whatever the temperature says, it's going to feel colder than that. well, the unemployment rate dropping to the lowest rate in five years, 7% is an encouraging sign for the economy. kristen welker shows us washington's dysfunction could threaten the recovery. >> reporter: launched an eyeglass company three years ago. these days, signs the economy is recovering. >> more than doubled in sales. next year, we are planning to hire 150 people. >> reporter: that hiring trend reflects what is happening throughout the country with news that employers added $200,000 jobs for the last months. 40,000 in education and health care. 27,000 manufacturing jobs, 17,000 construction jobs. >> now, we are getting consistent jobs reports. it's positive. it's positive for the economy and people should feel generally

better that conditions are improving. >> reporter: on closer look, the unemployment rate for adult men is 6.7%. for women, 6.2%. the numbers are higher for african-americans and teenagers. still, some worry washington's upcoming budget battles could threaten the recovery. >> the u.s. economy pays attention to what washington is doing but this is an unpredictable business. it makes it interesting, but hard to know, sort of, what washington does in the next week, month or year. what that means, how much the economy can recover and at what rate. >> reporter: there may be political uncertainty, for the time being, only good news for recent college grads who just land their first job. >> i look at it as the start of a career, not just a job. >> that was kristen welker reporting. cold weather moves in for the pearl harbor ceremony today.

from the top of mount diablo to the east bay campus. another tradition isn't happening this year, not because of the cold. the pentagon denied a request for the missing man flyover in hawaii grounding the f-22. the flyover would have added a cost of $70,000 and it is leaving some pearl harbor survivors very upset. >> to not see a flyover, i can't imagine. >> i'm totally disgusted. the one day of the year when we are honoring our military from world war ii. >> instead of fighter jets, two vintage training aircraft from world war ii will soar above pearl harbor in the fly by. they hope to have it back next year. until washington gives a thumbs up, missing man flyovers are a

thing of the past. still ahead, the latest on the winter weather advisory and what you need to know if you are headed outside. >> speaking of which, the skies are clearing, but the cold is settling in. taking a live look here, you can see the clouds moving so fast, visible with the naked eye this morning. now trailing behind the area of low pressure that brought us over an inch of rain, we are going to see some frigid nights. i'm talking freeze warnings in place, possibly for much of the week in combination with spare the air days. we have a lot to go over. i'll let you know when the skies clear up. a warm up will make its way into the area when today in the bay comes back.

welcome back now. good saturdays morning to you. the time is 7:44. you know what? we are kind of waking up to a winter wonderlands here in the bay area. i'm not going to blow it out of

proportion, but we did pick up snowfall on top of mount hamilton and getting flurries around 500 feet. nothing is going to stick around today but kind of a cool thing to happen here. what i can tell you is some cities picked up over an inch of rain last night. now that it's starting to cool off, cold air trailing behind the front, we have a concern for black ice. i want to show you, set the radar back six hours. how much precipitation came through the bay area and how much snowfall came through lake tahoe. look at all this white. yeah, upwards of two and a half inches in some spots. all of it is headed to southern california. we are seeing low snow levels. this system will continue to impact us, then race across to the east and really do damage across the eastern portion of the nation. it's going to blow up over the rockies. we are watching the system for a few days. i want to kind of give you an idea of what we have left over

from it. snowfall coming down. this is live from truckee this morning. i want to show what it looks like in kirkwood. just a beautiful sight. i know all the snow borders and skiers are salivating. it's not wintertime yet so it's unusual to pick up this much snow so early in the season. if you want to send us your pictures, maybe you are heading to tahoe, we want to make you part of the show. send in your pictures. tweet us, using #snow. here is what we are looking at. 30 degrees in cal stow ga. we picked upwards of an inch of rain. travel cautiously in the higher terrain. petaluma 35 is the outside temperature. it gets colder out there on the roadways. travel cautiously. 33 in saratoga. the most likely place for black ice is over 17. 31 degrees in los gatos.

the snow is going to stick around for one day on mount hamilton. cold enough for black ice, keep that in mind, especially the south bay. i want to show the impressive totals we picked up. almost an inch and a half of rain. san ramon, 35 degrees, cold enough for black ice. same for pleasanton 39 degrees there. you don't want to lose control of your vehicle, so travel cautiously out there. here is where we are headed for the afternoon. jumping into the 40s. holiday shopping plans, make sure you are ready to hold on your bags. it will be cold and windy. make sure you have the heavy coat ready to go. 48 in san francisco. east bay, 46 degrees. 46 down in the south bay. that is really cold. traditionally, we hit the 60s this time of year. if you want the seven day forecast, you don't have to wait

for it, it's at the bottom of your screen. we have another weather event. frigid temperatures on the way, that means thick frost. temperatures drop into the 21 to 30 degree range. keep an eye on your pets. that's going to be the case just about every single morning this week with temperatures jumping into the 50s as highs and overnight lows in the 20s and thursdays at least through thursday. back to you, kris. >> thank you, christina. >> how about science projects out of scraps? >> they are so cool and so weird and whacky and different that looking at them just, you know, gets you excited about, wow, what is that thing? >> how a local teacher developed a nonprofit to develop thousands of classrooms. it's the latest story. i love watching tv outside.

and why can you move the tv out here? the wireless receiver. i got that when i switched to u-verse. but why? because it's so much better than cable. it's got more hd channels, more dvr space. yeah, but i mean, how did you know? i researched. no, i-i told you. no. yeah! no. the important part is that you're happy now. and i got you this visor. you made a visor! yes! that i'll never wear. ohh. [ male announcer ] get u-verse tv for just $19 a month for two years with qualifying bundles. rethink possible.

good morning to you. looking live at san francisco you can see the camera bouncing around a little bit. it is a little windy out there. that means a windchill factor where there's already low temperatures. it is no secret, many schoolteachers spend much of their own money on classroom supplies. thanks to one woman, teachers in the south bay and peninsula have had to spend less over the last 20 years. we have this mornings bay area proud. >> reporter: inside this building in sunnyvale, in the heart of silicon valley where so many new products are born, you will find a warehouse filled with things waiting to be reborn. box after box overflowing with film canisters, surplus packing, anything and we mean anything that some local business could no longer find a use for. >> this is a pet tray. >> reporter: mary can.

>> we don't care about that. >>reporter: she was a second grade teacher who loved creating hands on math and science projects for her students. one problem, though. >> the materials. if you are going to do budget based learning, you have a have a pile of stuff. >> reporter: stuff mary couldn't buy enough of on a teacher's salary so she became a scrounger. whatever companies didn't want, the old, the irregular, the surplus, she would take and turn into projects for her kids. she became so good at it, she decided to turn pro. the resource area for teaching was born. >> i really wanted to make an impact with kids more than just in my own classroom by supporting teachers and giving them the things that i have fallen in love with. >> all right teams, i want you to do a quick visual quality control. >> reporter: 20 years later, this is an educational

juggernaut. more than 9,000 volunteers help the staff of 40 transform 100,000 cubic feet of stuff a year into educational material. the finished project and raw materials are then made available to 8,000 teacher members serving more than 600,000 students in the south bay and peninsula. it is as big as mary thought it would be because she knew all along these were things students would love and that would inspire their teacher. >> there's nothing more powerful for a teacher than to see the kids respond. you know, it feeds your soul when you see that. >> after 20 years at the helm, mary is stepping down this spring. she says after so many years, she's looking forward to life as someone other than mary from raft. looking, it turns out, to be reborn a bit herself. garvin thomas, today in the bay.

>> still at it. still ahead on today in the bay, we have a lovely pet who is ready for a forever home and appropriately looks like a snowball this morning. we are going to talk about that and cold weather tips for the pets in your life as well. [ laughter ]

he loves me. he loves me not. he loves me. he loves me not. ♪ he loves me! that's right. [ mom ] warm and flaky in 15, everyone loves pillsbury grands! [ girl ] make dinner pop! [ female announcer ] holiday cookies are a big job. everything has to be just right.

perfection is in the details. ♪ pillsbury cookie dough. make the holidays pop! this morning we have our friends from pets joining us this morning. we have meredith along with lisa simmons. she l like a snowball this morning. >> she does. she's a puppy, about 3 months old. all her siblings went to homes. she's the last one. sometimes we save the best for last. >> she's looking like please, somebody. >> i know. >> she's about 3 months, ready go, microchipped. >> shots appropriate to age. >> we have been talking about cold weather tips for folks

hitting the road, driving and want to make donations to homeless shelters, but there are concerns for pets as well. you shared tips with us this morning. we can put them up on the screen. make sure the water is not frozen over, otherwise, they don't have anything to drink. >> absolutely, it can crack their dish. you might think you have left them with appropriate water and it's gone. >> yeah. >> also, blankets, you can pick up army/navy blankets at the surplus store, they work wonderful. they are really, really warm. >> raise their beds, even the ones that like to be outside, raise the beds off the ground. >> absolutely. the most important thing is if you have youngsters or older animals, they really, really are affected by the cold and keeping them, you know, dry and warm is critically important. >> leaving them in the car is a bad idea because it refrigerates, it keeps the cold in. >> absolutely. >> thank you for coming in. >> thank you.

>> we'll check their paws if we head over to tahoe and walk the dogs. >> absolutely. >> thank you, see you soon. meredith, i hope you find a home soon. you can find out more about pets in need, petsinneed.org. we want a last check at the weather. >> yes, we are going to see really cold nights. they are great tips about protecting your pets. i want to show you what's coming through the bay area. freezing cold temperatures out there. there is an accident on northbound 101 near roanoke park. 32 to 38 degrees for the next couple hours. it is possible. later on today, temperatures are going to warm into the upper 40s. it's going to be cold all day with the windchill factor. nice sunny skies return to the bay area. overnight, freezing cold temperatures return, 29 in the south bay, 30 on monday. it's still going to be cold out there. back to you, kris.

>> thank you very much christina. thank you for making us a part of your morning, see you tomorrow.

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